The US Department of the Treasury established FinCEN in 1990 to
provide a government-wide multisource financial intelligence and analysis
network.
The organization's operation was broadened in 1994 to include
regulatory responsibilities for administering the Bank Secrecy Act
(BSA), one of
the nation's most potent weapons for preventing corruption of
the US financial system.

The BSA, enacted in 1970, authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury
to require certain records or reports that have a high degree
of usefulness in criminal, tax, or regulatory investigations or proceedings,
or in the
conduct of intelligence or counterintelligence activities, to
protect
against international terrorism. The authority of the Secretary
to administer Title
II of the Bank Secrecy Act (codified at 31 U.S.C. 5311-5332 with
implementing regulations at 31 C.F.R. Part 103) has been delegated
to the Director of
FinCEN.

FinCEN’s website can be found at: http://www.fincen.gov/ and
is designed for ease of access by topic of interest or specific industry.
FinCEN
periodically initiates and develops reports and publications
covering anti-money laundering
issues. These types of documents are available on the FinCEN website
at: